FILE - Britain's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab leaves the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in central London, July 1, 2020.
Britain’s foreign ministry said Thursday Russia sought to interfere in Britain’s 2019 general election by illicitly acquiring sensitive documents relating to a planned free trade agreement with the United States and leaking them online.
In a statement submitted to the British House of Commons, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said, “It is almost certain that Russian actors sought to interfere in the 2019 General Election through the online amplification of illicitly acquired and leaked Government documents.”
Raab said the documents relating to the British-U.S. trade deal were “illicitly acquired before the 2019 General Election and disseminated online via the social media platform Reddit.”
Raab said their investigation found that when the documents made little impact, further attempts were made to promote illicitly obtained material online before the election. He said Britain reserves the right to respond with appropriate measures in the future.
Russia's Foreign Ministry declined requests for immediate comment but said it would respond later Thursday. President Vladimir Putin has laughed off similar allegations in the past.